London 2012 velodrome christened by Hoy

Image 1 of 2

There may still be two years until the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics but yesterday Sir Chris Hoy was getting an early taste of London's newest velodrome to celebrate a milestone in the city's Games countdown.

Joined by chief of the London 2012 organising committee Lord Sebastian Coe and London Mayor Boris Johnson, Britain's Olympic star took his first laps on the track which he hopes to celebrate another gold medal in two years' time.

"The last time I was here it was a hole in the ground," Hoy told the gathering of reporters who also took great interest in the antics of Johnson, who had commandeered the Scotsman's bike to complete a couple of ceremonial laps of his own.

"The focus has been from the athlete's point of view. Everything has been addressed - even the toilets are only a 15-second walk away for the competitors. We never usually get looked after like that.

"It's that attention to detail again, a detail that is promising so much in two years' time."

There have been scant negative headlines surrounding London's Olympic organisation over the past three years and in particular the velodrome has been one of the shining lights of progress in preparations for Lord Coe and his team.

And Great Britain's riders are expected to provide the spark that will light this velodrome during the Games, with Hoy leading the team that is aiming to continue the amazing run of success enjoyed by the squad in Beijing, where it took gold in the men's individual and team sprint, men's team and individual pursuit, women's sprint and men's keirin.